Getty Levi Wallace, when he was with the Buffalo Bills.
Though their cornerback depth is questionable, the Pittsburgh Steelers chose not to address the position in the draft. By remaining quiet, head coach Mike Tomlin and outgoing general manager Kevin Colbert showed a vote of confidence in their current group to see how it performs during offseason workouts and training camp.
One reason they felt confident was the addition of veteran Levi Wallace, who was brought in among several free agent moves.
“This is a guy that has just been battle-tested in every stage of life,” Tomlin said of Wallace in March. “He was a walk-on at Alabama and earned his way. He was undrafted in Buffalo and earned his way. I’m just really excited about having an opportunity to work with a guy who has overcome adversity and smiled in the face of it in a manner which he has, throughout every level of play.”
Despite going undrafted in 2018, Wallace started in 52 games over four years with the Buffalo Bills.
“I don’t let people’s expectations get put on me,” Wallace told the media on March 17. “People say undrafted, I say eighth round. So I did get drafted. That’s been my story: walking on at Alabama, and no one expected me to start there, win a championship, let alone get a scholarship.”
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Wallace’s proven talent and experience immediately placed him atop ESPN’s offseason depth chart for the Steelers, opposite second-year Steeler Ahkello Witherspoon. Will Wallace and Witherspoon show enough to keep their coveted spots heading into Week 1? It’s something to watch in the coming months.
PFF: Steelers’ Most Underrated Player
Nobody loves to see an underdog succeed more than Mike Tomlin. And that’s precisely the label Pro Football Focus gave to Wallace in a May 12 article highlighting the most underrated players on every team.
“Wallace is a classic underdog story,” PFF’s Sam Monson wrote. “An undersized cornerback without special physical traits, he was a walk-on at Alabama and went undrafted in the NFL before going on to start consistently for Buffalo opposite Tre’Davious White. He likely won’t ever be a great player, but he’s consistently better than he is given credit for and exceeds expectations because of it. Wallace has never earned a below-average PFF coverage grade in a season, and he’ll likely continue to impress after signing with the Steelers this offseason.”
In 2021, his 50 solo tackles, two interceptions and 47 receptions allowed on 81 targets earned Wallace an overall defensive grade of 66.5.
The Steelers will need him to keep riding that momentum into his first season in Pittsburgh. If all goes as planned this offseason, he’ll be back on the field creating chaos for offenses with former Alabama teammate Minkah Fitzpatrick.
An Opportunity of a Lifetime
It’s not every day that an athlete gets signed by a team he grew up following, but that’s what happened to Wallace.
Pittsburgh had its sights set on Wallace as an undrafted free agent, but the cornerback chose the Bills instead. “I think Buffalo, at the time, was just better for me to go in order to make a team and secure a starting spot,” Wallace said.
What Wallace didn’t know back then was that the Steelers could have used his talents in the defensive backfield. The 2018 roster had Joe Haden and raw athletes in Mike Hilton and Cam Sutton. In hindsight, that was about it. Starting opposite Haden was Coty Sensabaugh, who contributed very little in two seasons with Pittsburgh. And then there was the dreadful Artie Burns experiment.
“I’m so excited to be a part of the Black & Gold,” Wallace shared in a video message to fans after being signed. “It’s been a long time coming. It’s my mom’s favorite team. I grew up watching the Steelers. … Here we go!”